Sen. Marchione donates her pension

Kathy Marchione will give her $66,000 annual pension from clerk position to charity

Jimmy Vielkin, Times Union

By Jimmy Vielkind

Updated 7:02 am, Tuesday, February 19, 2013

State Senator Kathy Marchione addresses those gathered at The Conservative Party Political Annual Conference (CPPAC) at the Holiday Inn on Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013 in Albany, NY. (Paul Buckowski / Times Union)

ALBANY — Freshman Sen. Kathy Marchione will donate her pension to charity, and the money is already flowing.

Marchione, R-Halfmoon, is receiving a $66,000 pension for her decades of work for the town of Halfmoon and Saratoga County, where she had served as clerk until the new year, when she joined the Senate.

"As I said in my campaign, my plan is to donate to organizations, churches, charities of my choice," Marchione said. She said she's still working with an accountant to figure out the best way to process the payments, but said the entire amount, after taxes, would be donated.

The pension comes on top of a $79,500 Senate salary, and became an issue in her Republican primary campaign against Roy McDonald. Marchione submitted retirement papers before the primary election, but rescinded them several days later, when the race was still too close to call. McDonald's allies charged Marchione was a "double dipper," but she explained that her retirement would allow for the county clerk post to be filled during an election rather than an appointment by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat. It remains vacant.

Several state lawmakers — including Lt. Gov. Bob Duffy — collect pensions on top of their official salaries, which is entirely permissible under state law. Some lawmakers, including ex-Assemblyman Jack McEneny, D-Albany, retired from office before they were sworn in for a new term, allowing them to collect a pension and salary. In 2012, Sen. Hugh Farley, R-Niskayuna, announced he would start collecting a pension to lock in benefits for his wife. Farley, 80, was first elected to the Senate in 1976. His annual pension will be just under $59,000, according to a spokeswoman for the comptroller's office. Both Farley and Marchione started receiving checks last month.

Elected officials have become increasingly sensitive to the charge of double dipping, commonly defined as simultaneously collecting a taxpayer-funded salary and pension, and Marchione joins Rep. Chris Gibson, R-Kinderhook, in opting to donate her pension. Gibson, a retired Army colonel, donates roughly $50,000 back to the U.S. Treasury to reduce federal debt, according to his spokeswoman.

Marchione said that she and her husband would pick the groups, and she has already sent a $300 check to Hannah's Hope, which promotes research into a rare nerve disorder.

Marchione could have resigned from the clerk's post, and continued to accrue retirement credits, but decided it was time.

"I have lots of years of service. I was almost at maximum. So I put my papers in and I'm collecting my retirement. If I didn't, I wouldn't have it to give away," she said. "My husband and I discussed it. It's a great opportunity to give back to the community in an amount of funds. That was an incentive."